In a response Friday, Mark Sanford said, "While it is not the course I would have hoped for, or would choose, I want to take full responsibility for the moral failure that led us to this tragic point.

"Jenny is a great person, and has been a remarkable wife, mother and first lady. She has been more than gracious these last six months and gone above and beyond in her patience and commitment to put the needs of others in front of her own.

"While our family structure may change, I know that we will both work earnestly to be the best mom and dad we can be to four of the finest boys on earth.

"I will join with her in asking the press to respect our shared desire for privacy as we quietly move forward. We respectively ask for your prayers."

After the governor made a nationally televised admission about his affair, there were calls for Sanford to resign and investigations by media organizations and the South Carolina Ethics Commission into whether he tapped taxpayer resources for personal use.

In November, the ethics panel charged Sanford with 37 violations of the state ethics code.

The commission will hear arguments involving those civil charges from Sanford's legal team early next year. The state attorney general is evaluating the ethics complaint to determine whether criminal charges should be pursued.

GOP legislators drafted an impeachment resolution against Sanford, a Republican, accusing him of "dereliction of duty" for disappearing from the state last summer without informing his staff or the lieutenant governor.

But a special House Judiciary Subcommittee on Wednesday killed that measure, instead recommending the governor be censured for his behavior.